Posted!

Join the Conversation

Comments

Welcome to our new and improved comments, which are for subscribers only.
This is a test to see whether we can improve the experience for you.
You do not need a Facebook profile to participate.

You will need to register before adding a comment.
Typed comments will be lost if you are not logged in.

Please be polite.
It's OK to disagree with someone's ideas, but personal attacks, insults, threats, hate speech, advocating violence and other violations can result in a ban.
If you see comments in violation of our community guidelines, please report them.

As Re-Open Florida group recommends schools reopen in fall, Leon ponders what that looks like

As Florida embarks on "Phase 1" of Gov. Ron DeSantis' plan to reopen the state during the coronavirus pandemic, school districts look to the future.

In its recent report to the governor, the Re-Open Florida Task Force recommended school districts reopen campuses "full-time" in time for the next academic year.

The Florida Department of Education "should develop" a plan to "phase-in education" during the summer months and create "supplemental education" to support students who have fallen behind during the pandemic, the task force said.

Among those sitting on the task force's "industry working group" dedicated to education and other topics include:

A Leon County Schools SmartBus equipped with WiFi allows students to complete their virtual school work. Buses will be located in various parts of the county during the week to provide internet access for students. (Photo: Alicia Devine/Tallahassee Democrat)

While the broad direction from the state to reopen in the fall is clear, the path forward is uncertain for public school districts like Leon County, Florida's capital county.

From opening at 50% capacity to students eating lunch meals at their desks, "all options are on the table," Superintendent Rocky Hanna said Monday.

He spoke to the Tallahassee Democrat recently about what the school district plans to do for the future of local education as the coronavirus pandemic continues.

“Until we hear definitively from the governor, from the commissioner, it’s hard for us to plan based on hearsay," he said.

The district has created its own "work group" devoted to planning for "Pandemic 2.0." Assistant Superintendent Gillian Gregory is one of the district officials leading the initiative. Gregory oversees academic services at the district and is one of five assistant superintendents.

The work group is comprised of district staff in various departments which include nutritional services, academic achievement, exceptional student education and transportation.

"There are many, many parts to a pandemic response," she said.

A few members of the group, including Gregory, have already met to prepare. District officials also plan to meet with Pasco County Schools staff to compare notes on pandemic response.

North of Tampa, Pasco County's school district is similar to Leon in size, Gregory said, and is a district that has figured out the "one-to-one" — the ratio of students who have laptops or computers.

Leon County Schools is looking at a three-tiered approach for forging on during the pandemic. The first avenue has to do with continuing distance-learning and building upon what is already in place.

"What we're trying to do is improve what we did in the spring with more information from our community that, should something happen in the fall, we'll have a better experience for students than what we've all lived through in the past couple of weeks," Gregory said.

Hanna also told the Democrat that the school district is aware more students need laptops and that the district should limit the number of online platforms teachers are using. District officials are looking into ways to connect more students with the Internet and streamline platforms, he said.

On Thursday, the district launched its "SmartBus Initiative" and outfitted 15 buses with Wi-Fi routers to park at select sites during the week. School Board member Alva Striplin also has pushed the district to spend the funds necessary, or take out a loan, to cover the cost of getting kids online.

Buy Photo

Leon County Schools Bus Compound Supervisor Fred Johnson sits inside a LCS SmartBus located in the Orange Avenue Apartments. The bus is equipped with WiFi for students to utilize as they complete their school work virtually. (Photo: Alicia Devine/Tallahassee Democrat)

In the past, the district has reported that roughly 95% of students have engaged with their schooling, which translates to roughly 32,100 of the 33,800 traditional public school students in the county.

The second tier in the district's game plan has to do with students fully returning to "brick and mortar" school sites, Hanna said.

The logistical challenges will require the summer months to plan as the district weighs health guidance coming from the county health department and instructions from local governments and the state's education department.

The third and more sobering path for the district is "we come back and then are told again to retreat home," the superintendent said.

When asked by a reporter at a recent press conference announcing the "Plan for Florida's Recovery," Gov. Ron DeSantis said any future spikes of confirmed cases of the coronavirus would be evaluated, but would not necessarily shut down the whole state.

In Leon County, Hanna is looking at how restaurants handle their reopenings as a vague indication for what might happen with schools. In the first phase of DeSantis' plan, restaurants may operate at 25% capacity with 6 feet between patrons.

But Hanna said he thinks schools should be "all in or not in" and that a "soft" open isn't practical. He added that what the district could not afford was a "week by week" uncertainty like what happened as students went home in March for spring break and then never returned.

“A public school system is just not that easy to control," he said. “I’d really prefer all in and let’s just be done with this."

Contact CD Davidson-Hiers at CDavidsonH@Tallahassee.com, or follow her on Twitter @DavidsonHiers.